Estonia Facts.

Found in the northern regions of Europe, surrounded by Russia, Latvia and the mighty Baltic Sea, Estonia is a fairytale setting come to life. Going to Estonia is literally stepping into the past. It has towns full of medieval architecture, including massive walls and towers that were kept in pristine, authentic condition. Not only does it offer medieval history, but also a glimpse into the more recent Soviet wars whose army camps are now open for exploration. Their rapid economic recovery and growth has led them to be one of the favorite tourist locations in Europe. Although they have short summers, their coastline provides the beach experience for the best escapade.

Estonia – IMPORTANT AND INTERESTING FACTS

Pianos of the Estonia Klaverivabrik Tallinn are among the most valued ones in the world known for their pure sound.

Estonia unique because it has more than one recognized capital. In fact, it has several capitals that change throughout the year. Tartu is established as the “cultural capital of Estonia”, while Parnu is known as the “summer capital”.

Estonia was the first country in the world to use online political voting. The Estonian internet voting system builds on the Estonian ID card which is regular and mandatory national identity document as well as a smart card allowing for both secure remote authentication and legally binding digital signatures by using the Estonian state supported public key infrastructure.

Estonia has the highest number of meteorite craters per land area in the world.

Estonia has two Independence Days. It first achieved independence from the Soviet Union and the second date is known as the “Restoration of Independence Day.”

Chess Grandmaster Paul Keres was born in Estonia and died in 1975; over 100,000 people attended his funeral (10% of the country’s entire population).

Out of the nearly 200 countries in the world, Estonia ranks in the second place with a literacy rate of 99.8%.

Estonia is small, but it isn’t the smallest country in Europe. It’s bigger than Slovenia, Holland, Denmark, and Switzerland. It’s about the same size as New Hampshire and Massachusetts combined.

Suur Munamägi, at a measly 318 meters (about 1,000 feet), is the tallest mountain in the country.

Estonia – COOL, FUNNY AND FUN FACTS

Almost 50% or around 2 million hectares of Estonia is covered by forest. And so make out an important and dominating landscape type in the country.

Every single year, several European countries get together for a rather strange sport, called “wife-carrying”.

Estonia is the country, which could be called the homeland of the three info technological super achievements such as Skype, Hotmail and KaZaA.

All Estonian primary schools use computers for learning and have internet access. Estonia was ranked highest across Europe (96%) for schools connected to the Internet via a broadband connection.

Rapid wi-fi internet connections are available in more than 1100 public places; in many places that service is free of charge. The area of wi-fi internet is constantly growing and encompasses all of Estonia

Estonia has the biggest collection of folk songs in the world with written records of 133,000 folk songs.

There is an annual entertainment event, known as the Eurovision Song Contest. Countries from all over Europe send in their best song for the televised competition, and it is often a launching pad for musicians’ future careers.

The law in Estonia —whether you are biking or just walking—you must have safety reflectors attached, to make sure that people can see you.

77% of the population aged 16-74 years uses the internet

Catherine’s Church in Karja, Saaremaa is a Gothic church having the biggest number of sculptures in the Baltic States.

Estonia – HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL FACTS

In 2005 Estonia became the first country to offer Internet voting nationally in local elections.

In 1994, Estonia became the first country in Europe to introduce a so-called “flat tax”, replacing three tax rates on personal income, and another on corporate profits, with one uniform rate of 26%.

Estonia adopted the euro on January 1, 2011 with its government finances in better shape than all the other countries in the euro zone!

The unique Mary Magdalene’s Church on Ruhnu Island – built in 1643, being the oldest preserved wooden building in Estonia. Additional value – it is located on an exciting small island

The first daily newspaper was published in Tallinn as early as in 1675 (in England – 1702).

In 2009, The 25th Estonian Song Festival at the Tallinn Song Festival Grounds joint choir of the General Song Festival has the biggest number of singers in the world. It is held every five years in July.

In 2011, Tallinn is a year that the Estonian capital will hold the title of European Capital of Culture which is a city designated by theEuropean Union for a period of one calendar year during which it organises a series of cultural events with a strong European dimension.

First achieved independence from the Soviet Union was on February 24, 1918 and again on August 20, 1991 after 51 years of occupation which is known as the “Restoration of Independence Day”.

1 January 2010, an IT solution was applied to Estonia’s health care—a digital prescription system. When the patient goes to the pharmacy, the pharmacist receives the prescription from the central database—there is no chance for the patient to lose the prescription or any risk that it might be unreadable.

As of 2003, it is possible for all Estonian schools to use the web-based school-home communication environment e-School (eKool). The purpose of e-School is to engage parents more actively in the study process, make information on subjects more available to children as well as to parents, and to facilitate the work of teachers and the school management.